Movie - Son of God

LAKE FOREST, Calif. (AP) — Easter comes late this year, on April 20, but the religious movie season starts this week with the release of "Son of God."

The film produced by actress Roma Downey and her husband Mark Burnett features many of the New Testament scenes from "The Bible" TV series that aired last March on the History Channel.

The Rev. Rick Warren of Southern California's Saddleback Church has called it the best movie he's seen about Jesus Christ. On Sunday, he urged members of his congregation to go see it with a friend. Some churches have bought out entire theaters for showings this week.

The movie "Noah" starring Russell Crowe debuts March 28, although pre-release buzz has raised concerns that its revision of Scripture could keep Christians away.

Faithful filmgoers may be more inspired by "Heaven is for Real," which opens April 16. It stars Greg Kinnear as Todd Burpo, who wrote the book of the same name about his four-year-old son's visions of heaven during a near-death experience.